1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a magazine strip for fastening elements, such as, in particular, screws, having a strip-shaped support strap with a flat cross-section, a plurality of uniformly spaced from each other transporting recesses for a stepwise displacement of the magazine strip in a magazine receptacle, and a plurality of substantially cylindrical receptacles for retaining fastening elements which extend through the support strap. The present invention also relates to a method of manufacturing of the inventive magazine strip.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Magazine strips of the type described above are used in driving-in tools such as, e.g., screw driving or nail-driving tools, in which fastening elements are automatically displaced one after another into a position in which they are arranged coaxially with the drive-in axis along which the fastening elements are driven in a work-piece. Forming a magazine strip with a strip-shaped support strap has an advantage that consists in that the magazine strip can be made flexible. As a result of this, the magazine strip can be bent in the magazine receptacle, without large friction forces acting on the magazine receptacle. This prevents any disturbances during a stepwise displacement of the magazine strip.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,713,709 discloses a screw strip having a strip-shaped support strap provided with centrally arranged, cylindrical receptacles. The receptacles have bearing walls which project downwardly from the support strap bottom. The projecting bearing walls provide relatively large bearing regions for the screw stems in the magazine strip, insuring thereby a reliable retention of screws. Engagement means to be engaged with a transporting device for a stepwise displacement of the magazine strip are formed by a rectangular recesses provided on both longitudinal edges of the screw strip. In addition, a plurality of stop ribs are provided around each receptacle and which are engageable by a screw head.
The need to form the bearing walls and the stop ribs substantially increases manufacturing costs of the magazine strip. Moreover, the projecting from the strip bottom, bearing walls and the stop ribs make the cross-section of the magazine strip rather complex. The complex cross-section of the magazine. strip necessitates forming of rather complex receiving cross-sections of the drive-in tool and of the magazine receptacle. This, in turn, increases manufacturing costs of a drive-in tool and makes it more prone to malfunction.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is a magazine strip of a type described above in which the above-discusses drawbacks of the prior art magazine strips are eliminated.
Another object of the prevent invention is to provide a magazine strip of the type described above and having reduced manufacturing costs.
A further objects of the present invention is to provide a magazine of the above-described type in which a disturbance-free, reliable, and releasable retention of the fastening elements is insured.